Where does “ōst” come from?
ōst (Old Saxon) comes from Old Norse austr, from Proto-Germanic austrą, from Proto-Germanic austraz, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂éwsteros — in the direction of dawn, east.
Ancestry of “ōst”, step by step
ōst traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Old Norse austr
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Old Norse | austr | east |
| 2 | Proto-Germanic | austrą | east; east, eastward |
| 3 | Proto-Germanic | austraz | east, eastern |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | *h₂éwsteros | in the direction of dawn, east |
via Proto-West Germanic *ōst
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Proto-West Germanic | *ōst | branch, fork, gnarl |